Wake Forest University
NC State
Deacs Set for Primetime Big-4 Matchup Thursday Night at LJVM Coliseum
2/8/2023 1:45:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Wake Forest women’s basketball currently owns the best home winning percentage in program history with a record of 11-1 so far this season.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – After winning three of the last four games, the Wake Forest women's basketball continues its home stretch Thursday night, hosting No. 22 NC State for a primetime Big-4 Matchup at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
The Deacs (14-10, 5-8 ACC) are currently on a four-game winning streak at home, which is tied for longest streak in conference play in program history. The feat has only been accomplished two other times, coming during the 2009-10 season and the NCAA Tournament team in 1987-88. With a win on Sunday against Clemson, the Demon Deacons now sit alone in 10th place and are just a game out of earning a first-round bye in the ACC tournament. Additionally, a sixth ACC win would give Megan Gebbia the most by a first-year head coach in program history. No Wake Forest coach has reached six wins in conference play until at least their third year on campus. Currently, Gebbia has the third-most overall wins by a first-year head coach in program history and is three away from the program record of 17 wins.
The Wolfpack (15-7 , 6-6 ACC) are on a two-game slide after falling on the road to Georgia Tech last Thursday and No. 12 Virginia Tech on Monday night. Despite the losses, the Wolfpack come into the game as the No. 22 team in the latest AP Poll rankings and currently sit at No. 15 in the latest NET rankings. NC State has limited its mistakes throughout the season ranking ninth in the country in fouls committed per game while also ranking 31st in turnovers committed per game. Guard Diamond Johnson is the team's lone double-digit scorer this season and she also ranks 21st nationally in three-point percentage, hitting at a 42.3 percent clip.
Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. (ET) at LJVM Coliseum. For those not at the arena, fans can tune in to ACC Network. A live stats feed can be found here.
Fans can follow along via the Demon Deacons Twitter, Instagram and Facebook accounts (@WakeWBB).
BLACK HISTORY MONTH GAME
Thursday at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum will be the Black History Month game in partnership with Divine 9 and the Black Student Alliance. Stick around for a stroll performance at halftime performed by Kappa Alpha Psi.
Claim your spot for Thursday at GoDeacs.com/Tickets and be sure to arrive early.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Demon Deacons have been spectacular at home this season, holding a 11-1 record with the lone loss coming to a nationally-ranked Duke team. Wake Forest is looking to finish with one if it's best winning percentages at home in program history:
|
Rank |
Season |
Wins |
Losses |
Win Pct. |
|
1. |
2022-23 |
11 |
1 |
91.7 pct. |
|
2. |
1987-88 |
11 |
2 |
84.6 pct. |
|
T3. |
2008-09 |
15 |
5 |
75.0 pct. |
|
T3. |
1988-89 |
9 |
3 |
75.0 pct. |
|
5. |
2009-10 |
14 |
5 |
73.7 pct. |
|
6. |
1989-90 |
10 |
4 |
71.4 pct. |
|
7. |
2016-17 |
12 |
5 |
70.6 pct. |
|
8. |
2011-12 |
14 |
6 |
70.0 pct. |
The Deacs defense has been great all season long, but it has gone to a different level in home games this season, holding opponents to just 52.9 points per game. Additionally, only Coastal Carolina (61 points) and Duke (60 points) have scored more than 60 points in regulation at the Joel this season. Opponents are shooting just 35.9 percent from the field and just 26.9 percent from the three-point line. In the last four games against Clemson, Miami, Louisville and Georgia Tech, Wake Forest has held them to a combined 8-of-43 (18.6 percent) from behind the arc with Louisville and Miami managing just one make each.
Below are how ACC opponents have shot from three at the Joel this season:
|
Opponent |
Date |
Three Pointers |
|
Pitt |
Dec. 29, 2022 |
1-of-10 (10.0 pct.) |
|
Duke |
Jan. 5, 2023 |
6-of-14 (42.9 pct.) |
|
Georgia Tech |
Jan. 8, 2023 |
2-of-7 (28.6 pct.) |
|
Louisville |
Jan. 26, 2023 |
1-of-8 (12.5 pct.) |
|
Miami |
Jan. 29, 2023 |
1-of-11 (9.1 pct.) |
|
Clemson |
Feb. 5, 2023 |
4-of-17 (23.5 pct.) |
|
Total |
6 GP |
15-of-67 (22.3 pct.) |
On the offensive end of the floor over that four-game stretch, the Demon Deacons have gone 29-of-81 (35.8 percent) from three, averaging 7.3 threes made per game. Additionally over the course of the home season, junior guard Jewel Spear has played her best basketball at home. She has averaged 20.5 points per game while shooting 47.0 percent from the field and an eye-popping 44.1 percent from behind the arc (41-of-93).
The Deacs also have a high assist rate at home, averaging 14.9 assist per game while assisting on 64.0 percent of their made baskets.
TOP-60 DEFENSE
Through 24 games this season, the Demon Deacons have done a stellar job of holding their opponents down in shooting and scoring. The Deacs have held their opponents to an average of 58.8 points allowed per game, ranking 58th nationally and fourth in the ACC.
This is a massive improvement in the rankings from a season ago when the Deacs ended the year ranked 164th nationally and ninth in the ACC in the category at 63.0 points per game.
Wake Forest has held their opponents to just 38.9 percent shooting from the field and just 27.6 percent shooting from behind the arc. The opponent shooting percentage ranks 123rd in the nation, the Deacs also rank 68th with 4.0 blocks per game and the three-point defense ranks 33rd. The Deacs have achieved a block on 9.9 percent of possessions this season, the fourth-highest rate in the Her Hoops Stats era (2009-10 to present).
Over the last 19 games, the Demon Deacons have been playing their best defense of the season, holding 14 of 19 opponents to 61 points or less and eight opponents in that stretch to less than 55 points.
Over the last 11 ACC games, Wake Forest has forced 16.1 turnovers including 20 in the win over Pitt, 20 in the win over Louisville, 19 in the win over Clemson and 19 against nationally-ranked Duke.
LAST TIME
Wake Forest vs. Clemson (Feb. 5)
Result: W, 69-64 (OT)
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With the win, the Demon Deacons move into sole possession of 10th place in the league standings and are just one game back of earning a bye in the first day. The top nine teams in conference earn a bye from the first round and the top four earn a double bye in the first two rounds.
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In their first overtime game of the 2022-23 campaign, the Demon Deacons held the Tigers to just 23.5 percent shooting from beyond the arc en route to their fourth-consecutive home win. Of note, coming into Sunday's contest, the Deacs were holding their opponents to just 35.2 percent from the field and just 27.0 percent from the three-point line at home this season.
SERIES HISTORY
Versus NC State
Series: NC State leads 76-15
Last: Feb. 17, 2022
Result: L, 92-61
-
In the defeat to the Wolfpack, the Demon Deacons were led in the score column by 14 points from freshman guard Elise Williams, tying the most points she has scored in an Atlantic Coast Conference game this season. Williams also paced her squad with three assists and hauled in six rebounds, tied for a team-best with Alexandria Scruggs.
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Additionally, this is the first game in 14 games that someone other than sophomore guard Jewel Spear led the team in scoring. Overall, this is just the second game in conference play that Williams led the team in scoring.
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MAY I ASSIST YOU
Under head coach Megan Gebbia, the Demon Deacons have seen a huge increase in number of assists and percentage of assists on made baskets. Wake Forest currently ranks in the 89th percentile country, assisting on 62.0 percent of made baskets versus a season ago where their 45.0 percent of assists on made baskets ranked in the 4th percentile in the country.
The Demon Deacons had their best game in terms of assisting the basketball in over three seasons as the 23 assists in the win over Longwood marked the most since Nov. 8, 2019 against College of Charleston. Additionally, sophomore guard Elise Williams tied her career-best with eight helpers in the victory. In total, seven Demon Deacons finished the night with at least one assist including five from guard Kaia Harrison and four from guard Jewel Spear.
1,000 AND COUNTING
Junior guard Jewel Spear reached a career milestone in the victory over Charlotte on Dec. 11 as she became the 30th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point club, totaling 17 points. She becomes the first Wake Forest player to join the 1,000-point club since 2020-21.
She continued to climb the rankings as she moved into 17th on Sunday. She needs two points to tie Alice Neal (1985-89) for 16th and could move into the top 15 with 55 points:
|
Rank |
Player |
Career Points |
|
10. |
Liz Strunk (2002-06) |
1,352 |
|
11. |
Lisa Stockton (1982-86) |
1,347 |
|
12. |
Jane Jackson (1977-80) |
1,342 |
|
13. |
Lakevia Boykin (2009-13) |
1,309 |
|
14. |
Elisa Penna (2015-19) |
1,269 |
|
15. |
Brittany Waters (2007-11) |
1,267 |
|
16. |
Alice Neal (1985-89) |
1,214 |
|
T17. |
Jewel Spear (2020-Pres.) |
1,212 |
|
T17. |
Alex Tchangoue (2005-09) |
1,212 |
|
18. |
Barbara Durham (1979-83) |
1,203 |
|
19. |
Sandra Garcia (2009-13) |
1,201 |
|
20. |
Corinne Groves (2005-09) |
1,194 |
Additionally, Spear went into the year with a chance to break the all-time threes record in program history and moved into the top three and became the third player in program history to reach 200 threes at Virginia Tech and is 43 threes away from moving into second in program history:
|
Rank |
Player |
Career Threes |
|
1. |
Cotelia Bond Young (2003-06) |
267 |
|
2. |
Chelsea Douglas (2010-14) |
257 |
|
3. |
Jewel Spear (2020-Pres.) |
214 |
|
4. |
Nicole Levesque (1991-94) |
193 |
|
5. |
Heidi Coleman (1995-99) |
191 |
OWNING THE ARC
The trio of senior Olivia Summiel, junior Jewel Spear and sophomore Elise Williams has been shooting the basketball from behind the arc at high clips. They have combined to knock down 124-of-341 attempts from distance or 36.4 percent. Spear has hit 66-of-181 (36.5 percent), Summiel has knocked down 27-of-74 (36.5 percent) and Williams has hit 31-of-86 (36.0 percent).
Spear leads the conference with 66 three pointers made (14th nationally) and 2.87 threes made per game (17th nationally). Additionally, she is one of just three players in program history to reach 200 career threes, achieving the milestone against Virginia Tech.
On the defensive side of the floor, Wake Forest is limiting opponents to just 27.6 percent shooting from behind the arc, ranking 33rd in the country.
The Demon Deacons have been one of the best teams in the ACC at shooting the three-point shot so far this season, knocking down 6.8 threes per game over their first 24 games. This also ranks 105th nationally:
|
Rank |
Team |
Threes Made Per Game |
|
1. |
Virginia Tech |
7.9 |
|
2. |
Florida St. |
7.3 |
|
3. |
Wake Forest |
6.8 |
|
T4. |
North Carolina |
6.3 |
|
T4. |
Clemson |
6.3 |
BLOCKAGE
Olivia Summiel a block against Miami Sunday. She now ranks 44rd nationally with 37 blocks on the season and her total already is the most by a Demon Deacon since the 2018-19 season when Ona Udoh had 41 blocks for the season. Additionally, Summiel is now tied for ninth in program history in blocks in a single season:
|
Rank |
Player |
Year |
Total Blocks |
|
1. |
Lisa Dodd |
1987-88 |
60 |
|
2. |
Mekia Valentine |
2006-07 |
50 |
|
3. |
Milan Quinn |
2015-16 |
49 |
|
4. |
Meki Valentine |
2007-08 |
44 |
|
5. |
Lisa Dodd |
1986-87 |
43 |
|
6. |
Kandice Ball |
2015-16 |
42 |
|
7. |
2018-19 |
41 |
|
|
8. |
Jenny Mitchell |
1989-90 |
40 |
|
9. |
2022-23 |
37 |
|
|
T10. |
Dearica Hamby |
2012-13 |
36 |
|
T10. |
2017-18 |
36 |
Her 1.54 blocks per game also rank third in the ACC and 58th nationally.
As a team, the Deacs have blocked 4.0 shots per game which is close to a school record and ranks 69th nationally. The school record was set in 2010-11 when that squad averaged 4.3 blocks per game. Additionally, Wake Forest's 95 blocks this season are just six away from cracking the top 10 in Demon Deacon single-game history.
UP NEXT
The Demon Deacons get their second bye of the conference season as they are off until Thursday when the Deacs travel to Georgia Tech for the second game of the season series. Wake Forest is looking to complete the regular season sweep of the Yellowjackets for the first time since the 2003-04 season.
For those who are unable to attend on Thursday night, the game can be seen on ACC Network Extra with tipoff scheduled for 7 p.m.
